Wisdom Wasted
by Cloister
Summary: In the final battle, Aang disagrees with his past lives to kill Ozai. He ignores countless years of past Avatars and experience to risk everything on an unknown technique taught to him by a Lion Turtle. This reckless move costs him dearly.


I got caught up with the Avatar finale recently. I couldn't help but wonder what it would have been like if Ozai was too strong for Aang to handle while energybending. Not to mention, Aang had gone against countless years of previous lives and Avatars just so he could avoid killing someone with a technique he had never seen before. So it inspired me to write this. Dark and quick.

* * *

><p>Avatar Aang hung onto his life by a thread. The battle against Phoenix King Ozai had become a frightening, desperate struggle. A former Fire Lord powered up by a comet in the sky was unlike anything the young monk had ever faced in his life. Despite all his defensive bending and constant airbending to stay out of harms way, his noble robes had become burnt and tattered. It was all he could do to avoid getting seriously wounded while narrowly avoiding incoming fireblasts. Aang could not find it in himself to fight back and took up position in a sphere of rock to hide. He was gathering all the courage he could muster to face the Phoenix King down.<p>

Then, the battle took a surprising turn as his rock sphere broke under the barrage of fireblasts. As Aang flew backwards, a sudden impact against rocks had activated the Avatar State. At once, he felt the wisdom and power of his past lives rushing through him. His fear and reluctance to kill another living creature subsided as thousands of previous Avatars connected to his mind and spirit becoming one. What was once a seemingly hopeless battle made an abrupt turn as Ozai started in fear and began to run. The Avatar gave chase, as his previous lives had all passed judgement and decided a death sentence for hundreds of years of war and the genocide of the Air Nomads.

Yet, as Aang brushed aside Ozai's now pitiful attempts to resist, he did not want to kill another living thing. His personal values, as well as his teachings, set all life as sacred. Even a man as callous as Ozai seemed with the intent of burning down the Earth Kingdom and all opposition... he could not bring himself to kill. Even though council with Avatars like Roku and Kyoshi told him it was necessary, he disagreed. While his body commanded an awe inspiring display of four elements, his mind turned to his previous lives. He was surprised to see every single one in favor of killing Ozai. Not one argued for sparing the man who would crown himself Phoenix King.

The battle came to an end as Ozai was pinned with rock restraints on the top of a massive stone pillar. Aang made a plea as his previous lives prepared to finish it. Time slowed as his thoughts quickly passed around the Avatar Spirit. They respected Aang's values but tried to reason with him why it had come to this. But moments before the deathblow came, Aang exited the Avatar State and the symphony of four elements melted away. He had decided to end the battle on his own terms with a dangerous move taught to him by a Lion Turtle. Energybending. His past lives thought it too dangerous. But he wanted to try.

Aang stood straight in his airbender robes as Ozai remained helpless in rock restraints. He put his hands on the Phoenix King's chest and forehead and took a deep breath. Concentrating, he pulled all of his strength to the front of his mind, causing both of their heads to turn to the sky. Red and blue light clashed together as their bodies erupted with light. Suddenly another battle had begun within the young Avatar and the former Fire Lord. Their spirits had become connected as their energy began to clash with one another. The Avatar Spirit was bright blue as Ozai's burning spirit was a dark red.

The technique had opened Aang's very spirit to the man who had tried to kill him. He could feel the sudden surge of rage, anger, determination, and power of Ozai's spirit. It was overwhelming. There was nothing Ozai would let stand in his way to get what he wanted. He was prepared to sacrifice his wife, his son, his brother and even his own nation if need be. The single minded drive was frightening to Aang, and he pulled on his own feelings to counteract the flood of emotion. At this point he had to remain completely focused to avoid losing himself in the rush of Ozai's being. He had the world and his duty as the Avatar to guide him in the strange out-of-body fight.

Aang's blue light burned strong as did Ozai's. The deciding factor between the young Avatar and the Phoenix King had come down to willpower. It was a battle Aang quickly discovered he was woefully unprepared to win. The sky slowly turned red as Ozai's energy began to beat back the blue Avatar Spirit and overtake the Aang's body. The young airbender focused as hard as he could, trying fight back. No matter how hard he struggled he lost more and more. Where Ozai was prepared to do anything without hesitation to get what he wanted, Aang was at war with himself. Where Ozai would never hesitate, Aang questioned thousands of years of previous experience in order to avoid killing. Where Ozai's mind was clear, Aang's mind was clouded. The Avatar did not stand a chance.

Aang began to lose the battle of the spirit. Red light flooded his body, corrupting his very being as he succumbed to Ozai's ambition. The Avatar Spirit began to die as he heard thousands of his previous lives crying out in pain as they were silenced forever. He did not know what was happening. It was like his spirit was being erased. Yangchen, Kuruk, Kyoshi and Roku were torn away with a cry of agony. The blue light began to disappear from the sky as Aang was overtaken. Ozai drained the young monk of his bending and began burning the Avatar Spirit for fuel to become even more powerful. Then there was only one color in the sky. Red.

When it was over, Aang collapsed to his knees exhausted. His head ached and his body felt heavy. He was now a powerless twelve year old boy. The Avatar Spirit was lost forever, completely consumed by the Phoenix Lord before him. He tried to stand but his body did not move. He could not move.

"No... what happened? No..." Aang whimpered.

Ozai broke out of the energybending trance to find he was more powerful than ever and laughed victoriously. He was eager to try out his power on the helpless airbender kneeling before him. With an effortless flick, he launched a firebomb that blasted Aang off the pillar and into the air. He reveled in Aang's cry of pain as he shot more firebombs into the sky. Each one hit Aang dead on, tossing the young monk even higher. The proud robe he wore was slowly burning up with each attack. But he could do nothing before the horrible power he had given Ozai. He began to fall toward the earth only to be caught up in a tornado of fire.

"Aaaauuuuuuuugghhhhhaaa!"

The whirlwind of fire consumed what little strength Aang had left and carried the defeated Avatar to the ground until he hit the earth with a thud. His face was twisted in pain as he lay sprawled on his back. His tattered robe fluttered in the wind as Ozai flew down to meet him. No amount of determination and struggle was enough for Aang to get off the ground. He was finished.

"I won't let it end like this..." Aang moaned.

"You no longer have a choice, little boy!" Ozai laughed.

The Phoenix King took off into the sky, letting the former Avatar writhe in pain. Losing the Avatar Spirit from energybending left him more alone than he had ever felt in his entire life. Roku was not there to comfort him. His previous lives had been consumed. The realization was crushing. He had made Ozai even more powerful than ever before. He was choked with regret for ignoring his past lives. Did they know this would happen? Aang could not bring himself to kill, and the Lion Turtle had given him a way to render Ozai powerless... if only he had succeeded.

He had ignored the wisdom and experience of thousands of years and thousands of lives for an unknown technique. Between a decision to fulfill his duties as the Avatar and live by the values of an Air Nomad... he could not do both. Aang was paralyzed by fear as he began to slip away. It was up to his friends to face his mistake. And Katara... he could not bear to think about it. Nothing would change the fact that he had failed, and the Avatar Spirit was finished.

"I'm sorry guys..." Aang whispered.


End file.
